Engineers require retraining, not the Ganga. This is where I left our conversation in my previous column. Why did I say this?

Environment ministry does not evaluate cumulative environmental impact of multiple dams in a region. Funded by the project proponent, the EIA report of a project too downplays the environmental costs, reports M Rajshekhar

Housed in the ministry of environment and forests is a quasi-independent body whose job is to scrutinise every hydel-power project for environmental damage. In its six years, the hydel environmental assessment committee (EAC) has evaluated 262 hydropower plants and irrigation projects, according to a February 2013 study by the South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People, a Delhi-based antidam organisation; it hasn’t rejected a single one.

Hydropower is important. But how important? Is it important enough to dry out stretches of our rivers? Or is there a way to balance energy needs with the imperative of a flowing, healthy river?

I have been grappling with these issues for the past few months. But now that the committee (of which I was a member) on the hydropower projects on the Ganga has submitted its report, let me explain how I see the way ahead.

Since glass traps heat, buildings require more air conditioning. As a result, energy use goes up

Building green is definitely important. But it is equally important to know how green a green building is. Take the glitzy, glass-enveloped buildings popping up across the country. It does not matter if you are in the mild but wet and windy climate of Bangalore or in the extreme hot and dry climate of Gurgaon - glass is the in thing.

Pune: The house sparrow is now the fourth most commonly-sighted bird in India, with the first three being the Rock Pigeon, which has emerged as the most common bird in India, the house crow and the

National Green Tribunal Hauls Up Industries For Not Having Proper Pollution Control Systems

Noida: A six-member expert committee constituted by National Green Tribunal to determine ‘sources’ and ‘extent’ of pollution in Noida has taken cognizance of diesel generators operating in large numbers, due to lack of adequate power, for causing sound and air pollution. The committee, in its report submitted to the tribunal on Tuesday, has also held inoperative traffic signals and lack of traffic management responsible for causing vehicular jams which lead to air pollution.

Eight years ago, when an opposition member in the Assam assembly wanted to know how many districts had reported arsenic contamination in groundwater, public health minister Dinesh Prasad Goala's re

BHUBANESWAR: To meet the growing demand for energy in the state, the Odisha government is planning to set up 12 new medium and major hydro power projects, which can generate 2,000 MW of electricity. Besides, survey work for 600 MW pumped storage project at Upper Indravati has also started.

Chief minister Naveen Patnaik announced this here on Thursday while inaugurating the global seminar on 'Hydro Power and Sustainable Development' being held under the joint aegis of Odisha Hydro Power Corporation (OHPC), Central Board of Irrigation and Power (CBIP), New Delhi, and IIT, Roorkee. He said, "We are trying to have a positive mix of hydro and thermal power sources with more emphasis on the former."

The Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-M) will not only coordinate part of the much-awaited national programme, Solar Thermal Project, but will also integrate the efforts of all the other IITs involved in the project.

The three-year Rs. 15 crore project, funded by the Department of Science and Technology, aims to use solar energy to find solutions to the country’s energy problems.

The municipal administration directorate has told district deputy commissioners to shift mobile phone towers in cases where they have been installed in violation of prescribed guidelines.